"So it's not a lot, but it's bad timing as it's coming through," she said.

The bitter cold temperatures of the past few days had left the ground and roadways frozen solid, so snow was sticking instantly, Fitzgibbon said.

Several crashes were reported on local roads, including on Route 3 in the Duxbury area, Route 128 north of the city and on the Mass Pike in Brighton near the BU Bridge.

New Hampshire also saw a spate of snow-related spinouts and crashes.

Several incidents were reported on the Everett Turnpike in Nashua, on Interstate 95 near Hampton and on Interstate 93 southbound in Londonderry, which backed up traffic to Interstate 293 in Manchester.

Temperatures will rise Friday afternoon, and there is a chance of a few showers.

Heavy rain is on the way for the weekend, and a flood watch is in effect for Worcester County.

A day after Trevor Noah was declared the new host of "The Daily Show," complete with the blessing of the exiting Jon Stewart, graphic tweets targeting women, Jews and victims of the Ebola virus are causing a social media backlash.